In the face of
the dominance of the classical villa model in residential
architecture in the second half of the 19th century,
around 1900 the influence of the English cottage grew
strongly in Spain's architectural milieu. In Cantabria
"picturesque" English architecture developed by
means of the architects González Riancho's and Bringas's
1907 project for the Palace of Magdalena,
commissioned by the city of Santander as a summer palace
to be presented to the king. The presence of the Royal
Family in the Santander "season" was thus
firmly ensured. The building was inspired by the Duke of
Santo Mauro's palace at Las Fraguas, designed by the
English architect Selden Wornum.

The
works at the Palace were carried out alongside a great
number of projects designed to turn the surrounding
Sardinero area into a seat of the Court. A number of
buildings were needed to cater for the recreation of the
aristocracy and Court officials that routinely followed
the king and queen on their summer visits. Access to the
Sardinero area and the Palace was improved by opening
Reina Victoria avenue, and three new buildings were
projected: a new Casino, the Gran Hotel (now the Hotel Real) and a theatre.

Such an influx of foreign models caused
a reaction, and the early 20th century was marked by a
quest for national and regional architectural schools.
The so-called "Monterrey" style prevailed,
being well-received among the haute bourgeoisie. Pardo House is a clear exponent of this trend. The
"Monterrey style" prepared the ground for the
success of montañés ("highland") regionalism
associated with Leonardo Rucabado and his 1911 project
"Palace for a Highland Nobleman". As an
alternative to the "picturesque", he sought to
articulate an architectural language that might
recuperate the best of Cantabrian architecture in the
16th, 17th and 18th centuries, in the face of modernist
currents. Thus a style appeared that reinterpreted the
Cantabrian Baroque casonas (with solanas or sun-facing
balconies, porches, coats of arms in stone, broad wings,
etc), best shown in residential buildings. A good example
is El
Solaruco. Regionalism in public
buildings used a neo-Herreresque or neo-Baroque
architectural language, as in the case of the Menéndez Pelayo
Library. Standing at an angle
to this building is the Bellas Artes municipal museum, which houses a collection of pictures ranging
from the 16th century to the present day. Among these is
a portrait of Ferdinand VII of Spain by Goya, and a
series of Flemish landscapes of the 17th and 18th
centuries, and works by Iturrino, María Blanchard,
Egusquiza, Pancho Cossío, landscapes by Salces, Riancho,
Casimiro Sainz, etc.